by Perry » Fri Oct 20, 2006 12:40 pm
Sherpa was the innovative original designer of the modern snowshoe, but they didn't go any further by improving traction and reducing weight. Other companies now have better designs and probably better marketing departments to go along with that.
I use an older model of the Redfeather Sport 30. They are very light and maneuverable and good for fitness backcountry snowshoeing. They use a limited-rotation hinge which is nice for bounding down slopes. The claws are sharp enough for clear ice and deep enough for powder. On a side-slope in slushy snow, I get better traction going slightly uphill or slightly downhill. I'm a light person, so Redfeather works really well for me.
The MSR's actually have a sidebar for a straight traverse and better for anything that requires a lot of traction. They are clunky and heavy, with a fully-rotating hinge which helps for moving slowly through really deep powder, but you have to be careful and not do any jumping, jogging, or sudden changes in direction because the tail can rotate all the way towards the front and twist your ankle. But for mountaineering, they are probably the best and most popular for mountain climbers. They also have a flip-up heel piece to provide relief for the calf muscles on long steep climbs.
Atlas is good. Heavier than Redfeather but able to take a little more abuse (bushes and rocks) and heavier loads. Their bindings are spring-loaded, meaning they naturally hold the foot in a forward position.
Tubbs are clunky and cheap. I've never liked them. From what I remember they often use the aluminum cleats, which aren't very sharp. The only thing I like is the plastic decking lets the snow slip off and not stick (wet slushy snow), but polyethylene is a cheap plastic that isn't very strong either, and combined with small cleats you could be sliding around a lot. Tubbs has a good marketing and business department. That's why they are so successful. Their backcountry snowshoes have some decent traction.
For fresh snow or steep climbs, poles make an enormous difference. The baskets need to be large enough for powder snow, which is about twice the diameter of most ski pole baskets (4 times the area).